English Verb Tenses and Conditional Sentences
Present Simple
Affirmative
- I / you go
- He / she / it goes
Negative
- I / you do not go
- She / he / it does not go
Interrogative
- Do you go?
- Does he / she / it go?
Uses
- Habits and routines: Janet often goes to the library.
- General or scientific facts: Research shows that people have different types of intelligence.
- Stative verbs: This cake tastes wonderful.
Adverbs of frequency and time expressions: always, usually, occasionally, frequently, often, sometimes, rarely, seldom, never, once a month, every week, in the morning, on Mondays, at three o’clock, at night.
Stative verbs examples: dislike, hate, hope, like, love, prefer, want, believe, forget, guess, know, remember, think, understand, feel, hear, see, smell, sound, taste, touch, cost, weigh, measure, belong, own.
Present Continuous
Affirmative
- I am going
- You are going
- She is going
Uses
- Actions happening at the time of speaking: Mum is talking on the telephone right now (now, right now, at the moment).
- Actions in progress around the present time: Mary and I are learning Italian this year (today, these days, this month, this year, at present).
- Plans or predictions: I’m meeting Martin tonight (tonight, tomorrow, this afternoon, next Sunday, week, month).
Past Simple
Affirmative
I / you / she finished
Negative
She did not finish
Uses
- Completed actions in the past at a particular time: I finished lunch late yesterday.
Time expressions: yesterday, last year, two days ago, in 2004, when, then.
Past Continuous
I / you / she was writing, you were writing
Uses
- An action that was in progress at a specific time in the past: At 10 o’clock last night, I was writing an e-mail to my friend Rose (last night, week, year, at nine o’clock).
- An incomplete action interrupted by another action: He was watching a famous TV show when I called (when, and, while, as).
- Two simultaneous actions in the past: Last year I was studying English while I was teaching at university.
Past Perfect Simple
I / you / she had stopped, I / you had not stopped
Uses
- Actions that took place before another action in the past: The rain had stopped before I left. By the time she arrived, I had already gone home.
Present Perfect Simple
I / You have lived, she / he has lived
Uses
- Actions that started in the past and continue in the present: I have lived in London for two years.
- Past actions with visible effects in the present: We have moved house recently.
Future Simple
I / you / she will / won’t work
Uses
- Prediction: I think it will rain. Tomorrow we will finish this exercise.
- Timetable: The plane will leave at 5:30 pm.
- Spontaneous decisions: I will open the door.
Be going to
I am going to work, You are going to work, she is going to work.
Uses
- Plans or intentions: We are going to celebrate my birthday.
- Situations about to happen: It’s going to rain. She is going to have a baby.
Future Perfect
I / you / she will have finished
Uses
- Indicates that an action will be completed before a specific time in the future: Patients will have their treatment finished in two months.
Time expressions: by this time next week, by ten o’clock, by the end of…, by then, by August, in two days.
Future Continuous
I / you / she will be working
Uses
- Actions that will be in progress at a particular time in the future: At this time tomorrow, Jack and Brian will be training (at this time tomorrow, next week at this time, in the next decades).
Relative Defining Clauses
- Who / that (refers to people): I talked to the man who / that survived the earthquake. My uncle is a photographer who lives in Barcelona.
- Which / that (refers to objects): The school (in which I study) is very big. The pizza which / that I like is the four seasons.
- When (refers to a moment in time): It was in 2005 when Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans.
- Where (refers to a place): Japan is a country where earthquakes are very common. Spain is a country where there are a lot of beaches.
- Whose (possession): The boy whose mother saved many people’s lives. Steve is a doctor whose dream is to visit me. Iniesta, whose team is Barça, lives near here.
Conditional Sentences
First Conditional
Describes likely or possible outcomes.
If + present simple + will + subject + infinitive
- Example 1: If I see Peter, I will give him your message.
- Example 2: If you travel abroad, you will meet a lot of people.
- Example 3: If it rains, I will not go to the beach.
Second Conditional
Describes imaginary or improbable situations.
If + subject + past simple + would + infinitive
- Example 1: If I were you, I would apply for a new job.
- Example 2: If it rained, I wouldn’t go to the beach.
Third Conditional
Describes unreal situations in the past.
If + past perfect simple or continuous + would (should) / could / might + have + past participle
- Example 1: If I had passed my driving test, I would have bought a car.
- Example 2: If it had rained, I wouldn’t have gone.